A court has found Nintendo guilty of infringing on Tomita Technology’s 3D screen patent.
A United States federal judge has declared Nintendo guilty of infringing on Japanese corporation Tomita Technology’s glasses-free 3D technology, and has been ordered to pay Tomita a royalty from every single 3DS sale. The royalty amounts to 1.82 percent of the wholesale price of each 3DS, 3DS XL, and any future revision that utilizes the 3D screen, throughout the handheld’s entire life.
Nintendo was initially found guilty of infringement by a jury back in March, and was ordered to pay $30 million (which was later reduced to $15 million). $15 million is nothing to scoff at, but for Nintendo it wouldn’t have make too big a dent in the savings.
1.82 percent from every unit sold, however, considering how incredibly successful the 3DS has been, and continues to be, should amount to quite a lot of money.
The judge rejected a flat rate payout as it would have represented an “unearthed windfall” for Tomita. The percentage-based award means that the royalty will scale with the price of the 3DS’s various revisions, which will no doubt drop in the future.
So what do you guys think? Is Tomita just a patent troll, or does it have a legitimate case?
Source: Engadget
